Gonsalves Raises Alarms Over Lack of Transparency Surrounding New Police “Squad”
Opposition Leader Ralph Gonsalves has voiced serious concerns regarding the current administration’s handling of national security, specifically pointing to the opaque formation of a new police unit operating out of Diamond known simply as “The Squad”.
According to Gonsalves, the current government has pulled officers from established entities like the Special Service Unit (SSU) and the Rapid Response Unit (RRU) which he claims depletes those forces to create this new group. The officers are being housed in a building at Diamond that the previous ULP government had originally purchased to serve as a regular police station for the communities between Stubbs and Calliaqua.
Gonsalves strongly criticized the lack of public disclosure regarding the unit’s mandate. He noted that when previous paramilitary or specialized forces like the SSU or RRU (often called the “black squad”) were established, their purpose, headquarters, and leadership were publicly announced. In contrast, “the squad” is operating without any formal designation like a Major Crimes Unit or Trafficking in Persons Unit. Gonsalves demanded to know the rationale for the unit, its size, its composition, and its reporting processes.
Highlighting the potential dangers of this lack of clarity, Gonsalves warned about how these situations can deteriorate, drawing a comparison to Grenada’s historical “mongoose gang” or “mongoose squad” a force handpicked by politicians that operated outside the regular police hierarchy. While clarifying that he is not explicitly accusing the current administration of creating a “mongoose squad,” he warned that an absence of transparent structures is how such deteriorations begin.
The Opposition Leader used the situation to characterize the current government as highly authoritarian. He argued that the current Minister of National Security is the most authoritarian since the country’s independence, accusing him of intruding into police management issues and encroaching on the work of the Police Service Commission.
Despite his fierce criticism of the government’s handling of the unit, Gonsalves defended the individual police officers assigned to it. He stated that he knows some of the officers personally noting that a few had even provided him with additional security during elections and described them as “good people and professionals”.
However, he stressed that these officers must be allowed to do their work within transparent systems with clear lines of authority to ensure the safety and security of the public.